MAC Commissioner Jon Steinbrecher elected vice chair of the NCAA Division 1 Council

Dr. Jon Steinbrecher, the commissioner of the MId-American Conference, has been elected as vice chair of the NCAA Division 1 Council, per press release.

The election was confirmed by the NCAA’s website via PDF roster as of publication time. The council is made up of representatives from all 32 Division 1 conferences and is the primary decision-making body of the NCAA.

Steinbrecher has previously worked on the NCAA Football Oversight Committee and the NCAA Football Competition Committee, and currently serves on the NCAA Transfer Working Group, as well as the Developmental Model Council of USA Football.

As vice chair, Steinbrecher will be responsible for leading the NCAA Division 1 Coordination Committee, which helps to conduct day-to-day council business between regular meetings, and in the absence of the Chair, will serve in the Chair’s stead to conduct meetings of both the Division 1 Coordination Committee and the Division 1 Council. He will also have other assigned duties, as decided upon by the full council. His term will expire in June 2023.

Steinbrecher becomes the first Division 1 commissioner to be elected to a council leadership position.

“It is a privilege to represent the Mid-American Conference on the Council and to serve the membership in this capacity,” Steinbrecher said via press release on Monday morning. “I am passionate about the role intercollegiate athletics plays in the educational development of students and the dynamic energy it brings to higher education. I look forward to working with our student-athletes and administrators in continuing to advance the academic, athletic and social development and well-being of the students who participate in intercollegiate athletics.”

Steinbrecher is the only commissioner in the NCAA’s first division to serve as a commissioner at all three levels of the first division, which includes the Football Bowl Subdivision, the Football Championship Subdivision and the rest of Division 1. Steinbrecher was previously the commissioner of the D-1 Summit Division (1994-2003) and the Ohio Valley Conference (2003-2009.)

Steinbrecher is a 1983 graduate of Valparaiso University, where he earned a bachelor of science degree in physical education and journalism. He later earned a master’s degree in sports administration from Ohio University in 1984, and ultimately, his doctorate of physical education in sports administration from Indiana University in 1989.